The Cincinnati Bengals' 2025 season has been, in a word, brutal. Sitting at 4-9 heading into Week 15, the team has struggled to find its footing without star quarterback Joe Burrow, who’s missed most of the year with a turf toe injury. And while the Bengals’ record speaks for itself, the conversation around Burrow’s future has taken a dramatic turn - one that’s sparked some eyebrow-raising trade talk.
On a recent episode of The Bill Simmons Podcast, NFL analyst Nick Wright floated a wild hypothetical: trading Joe Burrow to the Philadelphia Eagles for Jalen Hurts and a first-round pick. Yes, you read that right.
Wright’s proposal wasn’t exactly met with open arms. Simmons, not one to shy away from calling out far-fetched ideas, pushed back hard.
“I would want more if I’m Cincinnati,” Simmons said, referencing the current state of Eagles fandom, where backup QB Tanner McKee has apparently become something of a cult favorite. Wright acknowledged the point but doubled down: “At least we’re having the conversation, right?
At least Jalen is available.”
This all comes at a time when Hurts isn’t exactly the toast of Philly. His recent performances have drawn criticism, and the Eagles’ offense has looked shaky.
That might explain why Wright sees Hurts as expendable. But Simmons wasn’t buying it - not from a football logistics standpoint, and certainly not from a realism one.
“You can’t even make football trades like that,” Simmons said, pointing to the NFL’s rigid structure when it comes to player movement. “If Joe Burrow went to the Eagles, God help us.”
It’s a fun what-if, but let’s be clear: this isn’t the NBA. Blockbuster trades involving franchise quarterbacks in their prime are almost unheard of in the NFL, especially when that quarterback is Joe Burrow - the face of the Bengals, the heartbeat of the franchise, and the guy who led them to a Super Bowl just a few seasons ago.
Still, the trade chatter didn’t come out of nowhere. Burrow’s recent comments to reporters have added fuel to the fire, and not in the way Bengals fans would hope.
Speaking candidly on Wednesday, Burrow sounded more introspective than we’re used to hearing. “If I want to keep doing this, I have to have fun doing it,” he said.
“I have been through a lot. And if it's not fun, then what am I doing it for?”
That’s not just a quarterback frustrated by a lost season - that’s a player reflecting on the toll the game has taken.
Burrow went on to talk about the physical and emotional grind of his career to this point. “I think I’ve been through more than most.
And it’s certainly not easy on the brain or the body,” he said. “There's just a lot of things going on right now.”
It’s a sobering reminder that football, for all its glory, exacts a heavy price. Burrow has already dealt with a torn ACL, a Super Bowl run, and now a season derailed by injury. He’s 28, but he’s lived a decade’s worth of NFL highs and lows.
So no, the Bengals aren’t trading Joe Burrow. But the concern among fans is real - not because of a podcast trade proposal, but because their franchise quarterback is clearly grappling with something deeper.
This isn’t just about turf toe or a 4-9 record. It’s about a player trying to rediscover the joy in the game that made him a star.
A win against the Ravens in Week 15 wouldn’t fix everything, but it might be a step in the right direction. For Burrow.
For the Bengals. For a fanbase that’s already looking ahead to 2026, hoping their quarterback - both physically and mentally - will be ready to lead them again.